No Strings Attached (Sequel to Puppets)

Reyna

"No, it's a yes." She said sarcastically, and Rowland raised his eyebrows. "Sarcasm, by the way. My second language. Actually third, because I speak a fair bit of Spanish."

She began to feel a bit faint, shock setting in. She had... she had actually touched a dead body. With gloves of course, but still. She'd... she'd taken a bloody hook out of Lacy Lovell's mouth. It wasn't even Lacy anymore, because she was dead. Oh my god, Lacy was dead. Rowland asked a question, but his words sounded jumbled. The world was spinning as she struggled to comprehend what had happened. Rowland moved towards her, his messed up words in a concerned tone, eyebrows knitting together. The world spun and she felt so lightheaded.

She didn't know how long she stayed in a state like that, but when it slowly faded out and her breathing evened, she took hold of her surroundings. She was in the same room in the same chair, but a blanket was draped over her, and there was someone who wasn't Rowland or James standing by the door. The person, a wide woman, bustled over.

"Sweetie, how are you feeling?" She questioned, sounding concerned.

Numb, she wanted to answer. Terrified, or scared out of her mind, of just plain old exhausted. But instead, she answered, "Fine."

"You're not a suspect anymore, sweetheart. We're going to drive you back to your school." She said kindly.

"What about Annabeth?" Reyna questioned.

"She needs to stay here for a little bit longer. Let's go, yeah?" The woman encouraged her nervously.

"No, tell me. Why does Annabeth need to stay?" Reyna demanded.

"She's... uh, she's our prime suspect." The woman admitted.

"Sounds fun." Reyna muttered. "Let's go."

The whole car ride, Reyna didn't speak, mulling over the whole situation. Annabeth, the prime suspect. The L Team must've forced her to do it... or at least, forced her to write the little message on the table in Lacy's blood. Reyna recalled the blood on Annabeth's fingers. It made sense, in some weird, twisted way.

They pulled up on campus, Reyna stepping out of the car. She looked at the sky, realizing it was about eight pm. Geez. She turned to thank her driver, but she'd already gone. She walked towards her dorm building, swinging open the door and walking up the stairs. When she reached her dorm, people were waiting to ambush her. Namely, Drew Tanaka, Gwen Pascal, Clarisse La Rue, Silena Beauregard, Katie Gardner, Miranda Gardener, Lou Ellen Thompson, Ella Harp, Hazel Levesque, Piper McLean, and Thalia Grace.

She was greeted with gasps. "Reyna, you're back!" "What happened!" "Where's Annabeth?" "Did you kill her?" "Why'd you get back so late?"

Reyna sighed, shoving past them to grab her pyjamas and move to the washroom. "Screw off." She muttered.

"You heard the girl, back off! NOW!" Piper roared at them, and they scattered. Reyna went inside the washroom, changing into her fuzzy pjs and undoing her braid. She stepped out, only to find Piper waiting for her.

"I hope you're okay," Piper said quietly. "Tell me if you want to. If not, that's fine. Classes are canceled tomorrow, but Rachel's visit is still a thing, just to warn you."

Exhausted and numb, Reyna nodded along, taking a bit to process her words. Piper wrapped her in a warm hug, pulling away and giving her a sad smile. "I'll talk to you tomorrow. Good night."

Reyna mumbled good night to her before just collapsing into her bed, her limbs strewn across it, hanging off the bed. Piper chuckled quietly before leaving the room and turning the lights off.

As soon as the room went dark, Reyna was asleep.

The nightmares that plagued her didn't help with the whole 'resting' deal.

She slept fitfully, nightmares making a home of her mind and moving in. When she woke, finally, the sun was shining through the curtains, and Gwen and Clarisse were up and about. She rubbed at her eyes, feeling even more exhausted than the day before. Her phone rang, and she checked it. Piper. She clicked answer.

"Good morning, sunshine!" Piper said brightly. "How did you sleep?"

"Not well," Reyna yawned. "What time is it?"

"About eleven, you slept in. Rachel will be arriving at around noon, and apparently she wants to make amends with all of us." Piper sounded amused and Reyna gave her a half-hearted chuckle. "Now, care to tell me the sordid tale over breakfast?"

"Sure, I'll meet you in about ten." Reyna said. She pulled on a tank top, a fuzzy purple sweater, and skinny jeans. Too lazy to do a braid, she fashioned her hair into a ponytail. She walked down the stairs and into the main building, noticing that the usual way past the science lab was blocked off. She cringed.

As she entered the cafeteria, the laughter and chatter fell silent when she walked in. She caught Piper's eye and walked towards her, head held high, ignoring the stares. She seated herself across from Piper, who had set a plate with a bagel and hot chocolate aside for her.

"Didn't think you wanted to join the line," Piper said. She glanced around, looking at all the gaping people. She stood up on her chair.

Reyna frowned at her. "What are you-"

"Hellooooo students of Olympus Academy! Yes, hello, it's me, Piper McLean. Nice to meet you. Now, I know my friend Reyna and I are extremely attractive, but really, sweethearts, there's no need to stare at us like that! Honestly, if you tryna date... just nah. Okay, maybe a bit far, but still! Screw off!" Piper hollered and sat back down. Immediately, chatter resumed and everyone averted their eyes.

"Thanks," Reyna mumbled, sipping her hot chocolate.

"Are you ready to tell me what happened?" Piper asked gently, her hand on her mug of tea.

"Yeah. Yeah, I think so." Reyna answered tentatively, launching into the story.

question time my children!! (as of now ive adopted u all you're all my kids deal with it xoxo) QUESTIONS 3 AND 4 ARE V IMPORTANT

1. What did you think of Lacy's creative death?

2. Why did the L team set Annabeth up as the prime suspect instead of anyone else?

3. What do you wanna see in TMG?

4. What couples and friendships do you wanna see in TMG?

k love ya don't kill me for this chapter bye